Free stuff: there's no better way to celebrate a grand opening. And starting at 6:30 a.m. on Wednesday, October 24, the brand-new Dazbog coffee shop on the Auraria Campus will give free travel mugs to the first 1,000 costumers. But since life is about more than just coffee, Dazbog will also be contributing to the Metro State University of Denver community by offering jobs, scholarships and real-life skills.

The new Dazbog opened just outside of MSU Denver's Student Success Building on September 21, even if the grand-opening celebration is this week. Students jumped at the job opportunities here, the new store reports; 80 percent of the employees attend one of three schools on Auraria campus.

Dazbog is a Denver-based company, and now has more than 25 locations, including one in Wyoming and one in Texas. "Denver has had overwhelming support for our brand and our coffee since the company's inception, and in the short time that the Auraria location has been open, it has showed an equal amount of support," says Leonid Yuffa, co-founder of Dazbog.

"As Russian immigrants, we had opportunities when we came here and through hard work were able to create a successful company that we love," Yuffa adds. "We would like to extend the same opportunity to students that are working hard to get an education so that they can make something of themselves and become leaders in the community. It gives us a chance to give back to the community that has made us who we are."

That's why the company is doing more than just pumping caffeine into students, he says.

Starting next fall, Dazbog will give an annual entrepreneurship scholarship to a business student. A portion of this shop's gross sales and a portion of all sales of the "Road Runner" blend -- the signature blend named after MSU's mascot, Rowdy the Road Runner -- will go toward funding the scholarship endowment.

But there are more modest benefits, too. Starting with tomorrow's grand opening, Dazbog MSU costumers can text "dazmetro" to 466622 to enroll in the Mocapay mobile rewards program and receive a $4 gift card on their mobile devices. Customers who enroll will receive information on special promotions and discounts. And tomorrow only, early birds will catch those free coffee travel mugs.